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If you work on a vessel in the Gulf of Mexico, a riverboat, a tugboat, or an offshore platform and you get hurt on the job, pursuing compensation for your damages is not as simple as it might be for someone injured in a typical workplace.  Louisiana workers’ compensation covers most workers in this…

Underwater welding is one of those jobs that sounds almost impossible. It requires a worker to be both a skilled commercial diver and a trained welder, performing precise, high-stakes work in an unforgiving environment.  Here in Louisiana, underwater welders are a critical part of the offshore oil and gas industry, working on pipelines, platforms,…

Most people associate maritime law with cargo ships, oil rigs, cruise liners, and commercial fishing vessels working in waters far from shore. But in Louisiana, where a web of rivers, bayous, lakes, and inland waterways defines much of the landscape and powers much of the economy, maritime law can apply more often than you’d…

Working in the offshore oil and gas industry can offer huge rewards. Great pay, benefits, and opportunities for career advancement entice many to sign on as a driller, derrick hand, motor hand, roustabout, or roughneck in spite of hard work and long stretches away from their families. Our economy depends on this industry. But…

The Merchant Marine Act of 1920, also known as the Jones Act, is a series of federal statutes which regulate shipping practices on the coasts and internal waterways of the United States. Although primarily concerned with issues surrounding trade protectionism and wartime preparedness, the Jones Act also contains provisions which acknowledge the fundamentally dangerous…

The Longshore and Harbor Workers’ Compensation Act (LHWCA) was passed by Congress in 1927 which provides medical care, vocational rehabilitation, and wage replacement (typically two-thirds of weekly wages) for injuries on navigable waters or adjoining areas like docks, piers, and terminals. It was created to provide a legal framework to covers maritime employees, such…

Simply put, a maritime accident is an accident that occurs at sea. Maritime accidents generally happen on ships or boats, although they can sometimes include airplane and helicopter crashes that happen over water. Compensation for injuries sustained due to a maritime accident is governed by maritime law, also known as “admiralty” law. The Slip-and-Fall…